Dueling in the CDU
"Have you all gone mad on giggledust? What kind of law would throw a man in jail for a night for a bar brawl, but will cheerfully permit these two to kill each other up with swords so long as certain niceties are observed?" "Pragmatic." History The legality of dueling in CDU was originally more of a matter of omission than deliberate policy. Most of the cultural constituents have some mechanism in their traditions by which disputes were settled by violent "trials of honor", each with local adaptations and cultural quirks. In most cases these practices fell out of use during the Imperial era, particularly on Caspar itself where a succession of Imperial governors exercised little tolerance for the practice (and issuing a challenge to the wrong person could very well lead to charges of treason and an appointment with an executioner). With the founding of the CDU, curious (traditional) legal definitions of murder and assault failed to prohibit dueling, but likewise failed to establish any particular standards for a legal duel. In general, if an altercation was mutually consensual and did no damage to the property or person of those not involved, it could be overlooked by local authorities. Complications could easily arise from such an incident, however, with room for allegations from participants or their kin that a given altercation was less than consensual. The situation ultimately gained the attention of the CDU government in 16 ABY, when then-Interim Presav Thomas Mahon was issued challenge to duel by a member of the cabinet of the past administration of Salonika Batrad over implications of conflict of interest. Mahon's response was to cite the privilege of the challenged to set the conditions, with his choice of weapons being pitchforks of dung at ten paces. The challenge was ultimately withdrawn, but brought the question to the forefront about what ought to be done about the legal status of dueling. Ultimately, Mahon championed legalizing dueling, citing a storied history of highly public destructive incidents grown out of disputes between visitors from outside of the Union, and the value of having a 'release valve' for such inclinations. Having a Legal Duel For all of the myriad permutations that tradition allows, the actual legal definitions of a duel are quite simple. For a duel to be legal: * it shall be fought only by willing participants. * it shall be conducted in accordance with mutually agreed-upon terms by the participants. * it shall not endanger non-participants or their property. There is no legal obligation to accept a duel, though to issue clear provocation and decline a resulting challenge can carry definite social stigma. There is no legal obligation for a property owner to permit a duel to be fought on his property or in his place of business (and indeed it is common practice to disallow such behavior given the potential for destruction). Settlements and planetary governments also have the right to issue outright bans, or to simply prohibit certain forms of dueling. For example, on Kichnar Orbital Station and many other orbital habitats, dueling with projectile firearms or energy weapons is strictly prohibited due to the risk of damage to station systems. CDU military regulations impose certain limits upon military participation in duels. Dueling to the death is prohibited for military personnel, given the substantial taxpayer investment in training. Dueling using equipment belonging to the military is prohibited for reasons of maintaining combat readiness. Dueling among the ranks is prohibited for reasons of morale and discipline (though among the Union Marines it is not uncommon to informally settle disputes with blunted swords). To prevent any legal ambiguity, it is highly advisable (particularly where the terms allow for injury or lethality) to set the terms of a duel in writing and give appropriate notice to the appropriate law enforcement authorities. Parties may request to have their duel witnessed/refereed by members of the constabulary or military. Common Protocols